When I saw ads for some sweet animatronic dinosaurs coming to my area, I knew I had to figure out a way to go. My kids LOVE that kind of stuff.

So I was beyond thrilled to work with the kind marketing team to post information and host a giveaway for Jurassic Quest in Mason, Michigan.

Review for Jurassic Quest

The event day arrived and my kiddos were so excited to attend. I had read the night before that some of the event was outside, so I knew to bundle them up and prepare for whatever unpredictable February weather Michigan would hand us. Other than that, I was pretty clueless as to what to expect besides seeing these guys.

We arrived just as the gates opened at 9 a.m., and it was already incredibly packed. We had to park pretty far away, which is always a tough way to start a day with 2, 4 and 6 year olds in tow. Regardless, they could see some of the dinosaurs as we walked up and were so excited to get inside the gates.

Thankfully, we were able to head to the online tickets line. I would recommend purchasing tickets online in advance. The line to pay on the spot was insanely long, even as the event just opened. I heard that some times the wait was between 5-6 hours! This guy is saying what I say about that: Noooooo!

As we made our way inside, we instantly were fighting the crowds and I had to cling to my babies like a crazy mama bear so we didn’t get split up. The event was at the Ingham County Fair Grounds, so the activities were dispersed among the barns and areas outside in between. Because so much of the space was tight, I was so glad I didn’t end up bringing an umbrella stroller for my little guy. The people pushing strollers were definitely unable to stop as frequently to enjoy the displays, and at $17+ per ticket, that’s a bit of a disappointment.

Once we were through the initial entrance rush, I was grateful to get some really cool shots with the dinosaurs though before it got too crazy. My kids were mesmerized by their size, but I wish the outdoor portion had more educational information because I was never sure what species we were looking at!

Anyone know what kind of dino this guy is?

After admiring some of the big guys, we were able to distance ourselves a little from the crowd and check out some of the interactive activities. My daughters instantly ran to the craft table and chose to make dinosaurs hatching out of eggs of the three projects they could choose from. We spent a decent amount of time here, as shown in their creations:

After crafting and coloring, they dug for fossils — another activity they really loved. Beware though: We all got filthy during this activity, so bring a change of clothes if you’re heading somewhere after. {This activity was included in the VIP kids pass.} I wish the table had some baby wipes or something to at least wipe their hands because they were filthy.

When they were through, we made our way over to additional activities, including bounce houses and riding dinosaurs. My 2-year-old made a be-line for a bounce house, but we had to turn him down since it was only 2 and under and my girls really wanted to go as well. Anyone familiar with toddler can picture how that scene went.

We kept walking until we hit the spot where the bulk of the fun and concessions were. At this point it was too crowded for us to even figure out where each line was and my 4-year-old was on sensory overload and needing her sound proof headphones just to tolerate the noise. Just 2 hours into our time there, we knew it was time to go despite missing a few things.

The dinosaur rides looked really fun, but the lines were simply too much for my crew to handle since they were wrapped around half the building.

The activities were great for kids, and we really enjoyed the indoor dinosaur displays that had educational information, but I think the event planners need to re-think the set-up. This venue wasn’t ideal. Perhaps if the show returns next year, they should try timed tickets so everyone is able to enjoy the activities, and create some barriers for better traffic control. Packing the place to the gills turned off a lot of visitors, myself included.

With that said, if you attend this event, choose your time wisely. We got there right at opening and it was insane already. I wish we would’ve opted to go later in the day when family time starts to wind down for many.

AGE RECOMMENDATION

I would recommend this event for ages 4+. There were a lot of toddlers walking around, but for the price, I’d just wait until they are old enough to understand what they are seeing and have more patience for standing in line. I was terrified to lose my little guy since he likes to zip off quickly at times. I definitely could not have handled all three of my kids without my husband there to help.

OVERALL THOUGHTS

Is it worth it? All I can say is it just depends what your thing is. For older, dinosaur-loving kids? Perhaps. If you’re like me and feel too “people-d out” after a short amount of time, this will not be your ideal event.

When I asked the kids if they had fun and they all said yes and that they would like to go again. Not sure I would consider taking them again unless the company changes how they execute the event or bring it to a larger space, but it was interesting how much they enjoyed it despite the chaos. Sometimes it just needs to be about the kids, so I am grateful we had the opportunity to go.

If you attended this event, what was your experience?

Disclosure: I was provided with tickets to this even. All opinions expressed belong to me.

Disclosure:I will be receiving tickets in exchange for promoting this event.

Calling all dino lovers: Get ready for some life-size {extinct} fun! Jurassic Quest is bringing a slew of animatronic dinosaurs to Mason, Michigan for the first time ever. The family-friendly event geared toward younger children will take place on February 10-12, 2017 at the Ingham County Fairgrounds, and looks pretty sweet!

Jurassic Quest Return of the Dinosaurs is an interactive experience that takes you through time from the Middle Triassic to the Late Cretaceous Era with the help of 50 museum quality and animatronic dinosaurs.

Beyond the exhibit, there is other fun to be had, engaging activities for kids of all ages. Young paleontologists can get lots of experience seeing, touching, riding, and digging up their favorite dinosaurs.

I love the fact that this just looks like pure fun, combined with great sensory and educational experiences as well!

Here’s the full list of attractions visitors can see at Jurassic Quest:

DINO SCIENCE STATIONS. Test your knowledge! Take a quiz on the exhibit and when you are done make your own plaster fossil to take home. All answers are found on the information signs inside the Dinosaur exhibit.

BUNGEE PULL. Race to see how far you can get while the dino bungee cord pulls you back in. Compete against your friends, siblings or just test your strength.

DINO BABIES. Meet our baby Triceratops and Camarasaurus; amazing life like puppets taken out throughout the day for everyone’s enjoyment.

DINO RIDES. Children have a once in a lifetime chance to actually ride a moving dinosaur, with 5 different dinosaurs to choose from!

DINO CRAFTS. Sit down and enjoy our free craft table. Kids have the option to create their own paper dinosaur or chose from a variety of coloring pages. Paint, markers, crayons, glitter, feathers, eyeballs and more are used to decorate each child’s creation.

DINO BOUNCE. Run and jump for hours in one of our dinosaur inflatables. We have many different Dinosaur themed bounce houses to choose from including ones designated for smaller children.

DINO TOUR. Take an interactive tour of the exhibit with one of our dinosaur experts. Jurassic Quest tour guides take a group through the exhibit explaining different dinosaurs, time periods, and the environment from over 65 million years ago.

WALKING DINOS. Check our adolescent T-Rex and Spinosaurus. Take a photo, touch, and hangout with our pet dinos on one of their scheduled walks.

FOSSIL DIG. Young palaeontologists can uncover a huge triceratops or T-rex Fossil. Unearth secrets just like the ones that have been hidden for millions of years.

SCHEDULE

Jurassic Quest will be open on Friday, Feb. 10 from 3 p.m. – 8 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 11 from 9 a.m. – 8 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. – 7 p.m. Arrive early or attend later in the day to avoid crowds and lines.

TICKETS

Tickets range from $15-$24, and can be purchased online in advance. Infants are FREE. Pricing is as follows:

From everything I’ve read online, if you’re going to go and your kid really loves dinosaurs, go right for the VIP pass to save money and avoid needing to get our your wallet for extra costs.

GIVEAWAY

I have a family 4-pack of tickets for one lucky winner. Enter using the form below! Giveaway ends on February 4, 2017 at midnight. Winner will have 24 hours to respond to email to claim tickets another winner will be chosen.